Thanks Moosp, infact thanks to all who've taken the time to read and/or reply.
You are right in your observation that the Heli pilots are a close knit bunch on the face of it. Maybe that's what attracted me to becoming a heli instead of fw in the first place ?!?!?!?!? Despite knowing relatively little as a beginner, I detect a rich vein of cameraderie - probably similar to those in the fire service, police or army I guess. Sadly lacking many other places however ......
I am indeed going to 'go for it' and keep reading / contributing to the forum.
One minor point - us PM's don't all have plasma screen TV's !!!! No, we just have 'live' dancing girls on the projects, har, har.
....but you're right, I'm NOT going into aviation to make a wad of cash as I genuinely believe flying will be more fulfilling. A wage substantial enough to not have to worry excessively about making ends meet will be quite sufficient.