In May 1945, the fruit carrier PELIKAN, formerly owned by F Laeisz, Hamburg, was seized by Great Britain, and is reported the following year named EMPIRE ALDE, owned by the Ministry of Transport and managed by Kaye, Son & Co Ltd, London. The vessel appears to have made some movements as PELIKAN during 1945: it was seized at Brunsbuttel in May, and subsequently it arrived at Lubeck on 19 Oct. from Hamburg. In Lloyd’s Shipping Index of 24 Nov. 1945 the owner is indicated as Laeisz, although, of course that might be because up-to-date information was not then available. The vessel was sold to Elders & Fyffes in 1946 and was renamed PACUARE. The entries for PACUARE in Lloyd’s Register book, do not show EMPIRE ALDE as a former name, rather suggesting that the vessel did not voyage as such, and one source suggests that the vessel was handed over to Elders & Fyffes when named PELIKAN. I am trying to establish the identity of the registered owners of the vessel between May 1945 and when it was handed over to Elders & Fyffes in 1946. Any help will be greatly appreciated.
Roger Jordan
(Co Mayo, Ireland)