[gcraig]

We'd feel upset, too, if somebody important in our government were searched by some low-level employee at some foreign airport.

Actually, no, I wouldn't. I don't share your disdain for people you call "low-level".

I flew from Charlotte, NC to Houston, TX where my bags were searched. I showed them my military ID card, and that didn't stop the search. If Americans don't trust military service members to fly on our civilian aircraft without being subject to random searches, then this arrogant future King of Spain can deal with it, too.

[livius]

It's not disdain. There are simply some TSA workers who don't behave very nicely with the public, and that's the reason the TSA itself maintains a special crew for dealing with foreign dignitaries. The Prince and entourage should have kept their mouths shut, but at the same time, I have seen some very insulting behavior on the part of some TSA staff that would be hard to take if you weren't an American who was used to it.

I think the whole thing was probably handled very badly, and there was obviously nobody there initially who had the authority to resolve it. Miami is an important airport, and I think they should be better prepared for dealing with situations like this.

I would suspect it was Iberia that dropped the ball on providing timely information, and now the airline (a semi-privatized former state monopoly which is hated and ridiculed in Spain for its lousy service and rude personnel) is trying to cover its posterior.