Airport Search Of Spanish Royalty Ignites International Incident

Boy, the Spanish are not at all happy with the TSA. Not after the next-in-line to the Spanish throne, Prince Felipe (right), was stopped and searched while changing planes in Miami (FL).

The Miami Herald reports Felipe, his fiancee, Spanish television anchorwoman Leitizia Ortiz and four bodyguards were connecting from the Bahamas through Miami to Madrid when they were stopped by the TSA.

"The prince and his bodyguard felt they should not be subjected to the screening, but if they do not have an escort from the State Department or the Secret Service, it is required," said Transportation and Security Administration spokeswoman Lauren Stover. "It’s the law."

Stover said the six Spaniards were taken to the American Airlines lounge at MIA and patted down by "top-notch screeners with VIP experience."

"We don’t consider this the proper way to treat our future king," said a Spanish government official. "It’s a breach of protocol."

So far, there appears to have been no apology from anyone in Washington (DC). So, Alex Pinellas, mayor of Miami-Dade, sent the royal family his own apology.

"The facts I have received thus far indicate an apparent disregard for protocol and disrespect of His Highness and his delegation.… I have called upon our County Manager to conduct a complete investigation into this matter," he wrote.

There's no indication yet whether the Spanish consul in Miami will file a formal complaint.

FMI: www.sispain.org/english/politics/royal