HMS Dasher Memorial, Arran Ferry 71                                                                                                       23 March 2013

On the afternoon of Saturday 27 March 1943, the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Dasher was sailing in the Clyde Estuary between Ardrossan and Arran. At 4.40 pm, there was an enormous explosion. Within a short time, the ship sank. Of the 528 men on board, 379 were killed by the blast or drowned. In recent years, there has been a commemoration service on the Ardrossan to Brodick Ferry on the Saturday of or before 27 March. The ferry stops above the spot where HMS Dasher lies and a short commemorative service is held. The 2013 service was held on the Caledonian Isles and was conducted by Canon Matt McManus, Parish Priest of the Church of Saint Peter in Chains. HMS Tracker, shown in the background, a Royal Navy patrol and training vessel, escorted the ferry.