US military trainer killed in helicopter crash in Riyadh: Saudi state media

A US military trainer working alongside Saudi Arabia's National Guard was reportedly killed on Thursday in a helicopter crash at the Khashm al-An airfield in Riyadh, according to a statement published by state media.

The Saudi statement identified the trainer as Paul Reedy, without specifying if he was in the military or a civilian. Neither the Pentagon nor US authorities have confirmed Reedy's death.

A Saudi trainee pilot named as Hisham bin Abdul Aziz Al-Sheikh was also injured in the accident east of the Saudi capital, in which a Boeing AH-6i light helicopter gunship was involved, the statement reported.

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It added that an investigation is underway into the cause of the crash.

Alongside training, the US provides intelligence support for the Saudi military as well as air refuelling for the Saudi-led coalition waging an offensive against the Houthi rebels in neighbouring Yemen.

Earlier this month, local Yemeni journalists reported that the bomb that killed 40 children and 11 others in a coalition airstrike on a bus in rebel-held northern Yemen was sold by the United States under a State Department deal with Riyadh.

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