ROSEAU, Dominica, Mar. 16, CMC – The management of the St. Croix based Hummingbird Air is currently in negotiations with a new management group as the carrier prepares to suspend its services as of April 1.

Managing Director of Hummingbird Air, Sam Raphael told Dominica News Online that the “major contributing factor” for the suspension of service is that airport fees in the US Virgin Islands were “raised dramatically” last month.

He said another contributing factor, is the inability to allocate sufficient time towards the day to day running of the airline since he is presently occupied with the reconstruction of a local resort.

“So we had to have the service interruption. It is unfortunate that we had to make the change for both the staff and our customers, but at this point, I think it is the right move to make and from an economic standpoint, it was necessary,” Raphael said.

Concerning the possibility of restarting services, he said “the assets are there” and the company is still valuable, but managing director said could not say what the future holds.