A ferry officer accused of the manslaughter due to gross negligence of a former Whitgift pupil and his two best friends has indicated he will deny the charges.

Best friends Jason Downer, 35, Rupert Saunders, 36, from Tooting and James Meaby, 36, from Tooting, were all found dead in the water near the Isle of Wight after their 27ft yacht, the Ouzo, disappeared in August last year.

It is alleged the 37,500 tonne P&O ferry, Pride of Bilbao, was involved in an accident in the English Channel which led to the Ouzo's disappearance and the three men's deaths.

The ferry's officer of the watch, 61-year-old Michael Hubble, of Folkestone, attended a preliminary hearing relating to the charges at Winchester Crown Court last month.

In a brief hearing, defence counsel Oliver Saxby indicated Hubble, who was granted unconditional bail, would plead not guilty to the three counts at the next hearing.

Hubble was employed as an agency worker on the Pride of Bilbao at the time of the alleged offences.

The yachtsmen, all friends from school and described by their families as "competent, qualified sailors", had left Bembridge on the Isle of Wight on August 20 to sail to Devon and compete in the Bank Holiday Dartmouth Regatta.

However, they never arrived.

The bodies of all three men were found several days later following an extensive air and sea search.

Mr Justice Royce adjourned the case until March 30 at the same court