Spanish authorities have been searching for a Scottish diver since yesterday.

Officials described the missing Scot yesterday as a 70-year-old former member of the Armed Forces .

The search was continuing today but authorities have admitted the chances of finding him alive are slim.

He has been named locally as Phillip Evans from Balmedie in Aberdeenshire.

The dive school he was on an excursion with when he disappeared - called Club de Buceo Islas Hormigas - is helping in the ongoing sea and air search for him.

The alarm was raised just after midday yesterday by the dive school in Cabo de Palos near Cartagena on Spain’s south-east coast which said it had lost contact with the missing man.

Mr Evans was last seen near a marine reserve called Hormigas Islands - Islas Hormigas in Spanish.

Phillip Evans was reported missing by a diving school he was on an excursion with

A Spanish Coastguard spokesman confirmed at midday today two helicopters were taking turns to look for the missing Brit, who is thought to be 69 and not 70 as initially reported.

The spokesman added: “The operation also involves a Spanish Coastguard vessel, two boats belonging to the dive school, two Red Cross vessels and a Spanish Navy vessel called Infanta Elena.

“There has been no sign of the missing man since the operation was first launched yesterday.”

A well-placed source added: “Given the amount of time that has lapsed since he disappeared, the chances of finding him alive are slim but the operation will continue till dusk today for a re-evaluation first thing tomorrow.

No-one from the dive school, one of eight in the area, was available for comment.

A regional government representative for the area said shortly after the alarm was raised: “All the state’s resources have been activated in the search for this British national, a former member of the military aged 70 who disappeared while he was diving north of the Hormigas Islands in Cabo de Palos.”

Cabo de Palos is next to the popular holiday destination of La Manga, around 20 miles from the town of Cartagena.

It is popular with scuba diving fans as its sea bed is one of the most important nature reserves in the Mediterranean.

Hormigas Islands are two and a half miles from the coast. The sea bed there is considered one of the best scuba diving sites in Spain and has been designated an Integral Marine Reserve for its beauty and excellent state of conservation.

As well as the remains of shipwrecks and sunken boats, it is also home to reefs and deep underwater corral.