On his way home from work at the Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose in Cornwall, Adam Hughes, a Leonardo Helicopters engineer, spotted a kitten on the runway.
Mr. Hughes saw the little stray was limping with a fractured leg after losing his family’s pet cat the day before.
The small grey-brown tabby, however, hopped onto the exhaust pipe of a passing Volkswagen Golf and dashed inside the engine compartment as Mr. Hughes and two junior pilots approached the cat.
Mr. Hughes was given permission to disassemble the car by the owner, who was in a nearby hangar, and a passing lorry driver offered his tools to assist.
We had just lost our own cat, Orlando, to renal disease, so I was returning home to console my family, said Mr. Hughes.
He was a cherished member of the family who significantly aided my daughter’s mental well-being throughout lockdown.
There was no way I was going to leave a kitten behind that might be hurt.
The kitten was found within a tiny hole between the wheel arch and liner after the turbocharger, pipes, and base panels had all been removed. The car had then been jacked up in order to remove the base panels.
The kitten is now doing well at Cats Protection after having her leg amputated during emergency surgery.
