CONFIDENTIAL documents which are thought to reveal key details about the mystery of the sinking of HMS Dasher off the coast of Ardrossan are set to be released this Friday.

Following requests to the MoD and National Archives from Ardrossan author, John Steele - who wrote The American Connection to the Sinking of HMS Dasher - and MP Katy Clark, the files will be released almost 70 years after the sinking.

The converted aircraft carrier sank off the coast of Ardrossan on March 27, 1943, with the loss of 379 of her 528 crew - the biggest single loss of life of service personnel not to have been caused by enemy action of World War II.

Since this date relatives of those who lost their life and historians have been trying to find out exactly what happened to cause the HMS Dasher to sink.

John Steele said he has letters from the MoD which state they would not release the documents until 2028, or even 2044, until the death of nearly all servicemen and their relatives. He added: "They said they were trying to avoid any sensitivity which would be distressing to any relatives.

"But it's going to tell for the first time what actually happened this Friday." For the full story see this week's Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald.