Wrath,
Well put! As you have often accurately stated in the past a large portion of RW woes can be laid at the feet of Army RP with a "no tinkering with the cavalry" mindset. Most people, however, equate the RAF SH fleet with AIR money and bemoan the sacrifice of FJ sqns to prop up a land-centric asset. FWIW I don't think the current situation is that, it's just cuts in FJ dressed up as "growth" elsewhere (if you chop FMH to buy the new CH47 then the cost is probably the same) -so spin, spin, spin.
You're also right - "my fleet's better than yours" is best left to happy hour / airshows - let's hope we can share a jar next year!