Officers' tribute to hero cat Simon ... 'able seaman' ROYAL Navy officers who survived a siege that killed 17 of their comrades nearly 60 years ago will pay tribute to the cat credited with saving their lives. Simon the cat received the “animal equivalent of the Victoria Cross” for gallantry after he protected food stores on the HMS Amethyst from an infestation of rats, despite being badly injured in shelling by Chinese Communist forces during the country’s civil war. One of the survivors, Commander Stuart Hett, who was appointed “Cat Officer” with the duty of sorting hundreds...