Yelling that you have a bomb as you’re about to board a flight is probably the quickest and most efficient way to be blocked from boarding. After all, whether you have a bomb on you or not, no airline wants to deal with the potential panic that could erupt during the flight if you begin screaming that you’re about to blow up the plane mid-air.
But what if your screaming “bomb” was the result of a documented disability? Well, this is the sticky ethical situation that British Airways was faced with last Saturday.
13-year-old Mason Entwhistle was set to fly from London’s Gatwick Airport to Alicante in Spain. Mason suffers from Tourette’s syndrome with coprolalia, a disability that causes him to say inappropriate things at the worst time. Knowing this, Mason’s parents sent BA a letter in advance explaining his condition, as he was “incredibly nervous” he’d have an outburst in the airport.
🚨 NEW: Armed police marched a 13-year-old boy with Tourette syndrome out of London Gatwick Airport on Saturday after he shouted "bomb", leaving him and his family stranded.
— Breaking Aviation News & Videos (@aviationbrk) May 26, 2026
British Airways refused Mason and his family from boarding the Spain-bound flight at the gate due to… pic.twitter.com/YpT1t7JGaN
Unfortunately those fears were justified as Mason began yelling “bomb” at the gate. His family was told by British Airways staff that they could not board the flight. Video shows his parents pleading with a BA duty manager, who informed them that they couldn’t let Mason on the plane as he “posed a threat to the welfare of other passengers”.
Mason’s dad, Martyn, explained that the experience left him distraught:
“Mason was crying on the floor and desperately apologising to people. He actually said to a member of our party, “What’s the point in my life if I’m not allowed to do anything?””
The family eventually booked flights on another airline. This flight passed without incident, though they’re understandably paranoid about what could happen when they fly home from Spain.
Did British Airways make the right call?
British Airways is standing by its decision, indicating that disability or no disability, you simply can’t be yelling “bomb” while about to board a flight.
“This was an extremely difficult, complex and distressing situation. Due to a number of contributing factors, the decision was made not to allow the group to travel on the flight.”
Opinion is split on whether BA made the right call. Many point out that Mason cannot control his Tourette’s and his family did everything they could to alert BA that this might happen. Is it really right to bar someone from flying because of a documented disability?
This you @British_Airways
— Frankie Last (@frankie2001mia) May 26, 2026
"We are not refusing him because he's got a disability.
"We are refusing him because there's been a threat made that he has a bomb in his bag."
HE HAD HIS DIAGNOSIS LETTER FOR TOURETTES WITH HIM.
They split up his family and they had to pay £2.5k https://t.co/QKrgKLm8Bl
Others argue that the safety of the other passengers must be prioritized, and that regardless of the cause, it’s innately dangerous for a passenger to be yelling about bombs on a flight:
I’m sorry but Tourettes is not a valid reason to put others at a disadvantage. We tried to tell everyone this when it came to John Davidson calling people slurs.
— Sydd (@SyddRELOADED) May 26, 2026
British Airways did the right thing. https://t.co/InXORTx2n4
This isn’t the first time Tourette’s syndrome has split opinion recently. At the BAFTA ceremony this year, Tourette’s sufferer John Donaldson was in the audience as I Swear, a film about his life, was nominated for awards. While Sinners stars Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo were on stage, Davidson loudly yelled the N-word at them, leaving them visibly shocked.
Then, as now, debate erupted between those arguing we shouldn’t discriminate against people for a disability they can’t control, and those who say there’s no excuse for doing this in public. Debate is likely to rage on for some time, and there are no easy answers.
