US government training Saudis to build their own air marshal program

The US government is conducting a training program with the government of Saudi Arabia to aid them in standing up an air marshal program similar to that of the United States. In the coming years, Saudi-operated air carriers could fly around the world including to the US with US-trained armed security personnel on board. The program was reviewed and considered during the Obama administration, but Transportation Security Administration officials did not have enough time to solidify its details by the end of 2016, according to officials who worked on it at the time. The training program was formally approved in March 2017 when John Kelly, then Secretary of Homeland Security, signed off on it, according to sources familiar with the program.