A Minnesota father claims he was asked to de-board a plane from Denver to Minneapolis after he tweeted a disgruntled statement to @SouthwestAir directed at an agent and her 'rude' service.

Duff Watson told WCCO he is an "A-List" customer, entitling him to priority boarding and other perks. When Watson attempted to board the flight early with his two children, a frequent occurrence, a gate agent surprisingly stopped the family. He was told that he would have to wait to board later if he wanted to board alongside his 6-year-old and 9-year-old children. "I'm not trying to be entitled or pushy. It's not about the policy," Watson told The News. "It's that she was super rude and dismissive toward us."

"In leaving I said, you know, 'Real nice way to treat an A-list. I'll be sure to tweet about it,'" he told WCCO. Minutes later, he held true to his word and posted his feelings to Twitter. "Something to the effect of, 'Wow, rudest agent in Denver. Kimberly S, gate C39, not happy @SouthwestAir,'" explained Watson.

Once the family had boarded the aircraft and settled in their seats, an announcement over the intercom asked them to exit the plane with their belongings. "We met the gate agent who was very worked up and she says because I'm using her name in social media, that I am a threat. And that's why I'm being asked to leave," Watson recalled. "Then she said, 'You need to delete that tweet or I'm calling the cops.'"

"I was taken aback by the situation. My two kids were crying," Watson said, explaining his dismay at the forced deplaning. "She watched me as I deleted the tweet." The gate agent in question then allegedly ushered Watson and his two children back on to the same airliner.

Watson told WCCO the whole incident humiliated him and scared his kids. "There was no use of profanity, there were no threats made," he says of his unexpected confrontation. "There was nothing other than, you know, a terse exchange between a customer service agent and a customer."

"I have been loyal to Southwest," Watson said. "I was really upset that Southwest has such rude front-line staff members."

A Southwest spokesperson allegedly contacted Watson after the incident, explaining to him that the A-list members' priority treatment doesn't apply to family members and offering his family $50 travel vouchers for their troubles. Watson explained that he was not looking for compensation, continuing to claim that the website does not state an explicit rule regarding the issue. He has sworn off the airline for life; "Choose a kinder airline. #never again..." he tweeted.

Could this incident affect Southwest Airlines' stellar reputation? Continuously ranked as one of the best airlines in the US and one of the most admired companies worldwide, the airline is known for its low costs, outgoing flight attendants, and free checked bag policy. The airline certainly has a loyal fan base, but in a time of growing competition even small customer service missteps can send passengers towards a competitor.

Would this story dissuade you from picking Southwest in the future? Sound off in the comments section below!