Back to the topic: if we're realistic, I don't think the affordability issue can be ignored. Money is going to hard to come by for everyone in government over the foreseeable future, and Defence has traditionally been an easy mark for both major Parties when the culling begins. (I won't even go anywhere near what might happen with the Greens holding the balance of power in the Senate.)
I suppose it comes down to a single question: which would you prefer? A very small number of very expensive state of the art machines (with doubtful performance) that could support only a very few units in the field (if they ever get up and running, which, if we throw enough dollars at them, we can only assume they eventually will),
or,
as well as those very small number of state of the art machines, having a second string of cheap, easy to maintain and plentiful machines that could provide support for many units, allowing the expensive, state of the art machines to be reserved for the high value, high risk tasks where their state of the art kit could be used to great effect?
Anyone who's ever been involved in helicopter ops. in whatever era, (and it would seem quite a few of the respondents here have), would agree that 90% of helo tasking is, as someone before me has already mentioned, 'bread and butter' stuff, not requiring anything more than a lifting platform that in some cases, can defend itself.
Australia, despite what many on Russell Hill might wish for, simply can't afford to operate only top of the range equipment, at least not in sufficient numbers to provide effective support to every unit that wants - and deserves - it.
The RAAF has seen the sense in this approach in using the Hawk as a lead-in, second string fighter/ground attack platform. By the time a RAAF pilot gets on to an F18 squadron now, he's done at least a full tour on Hawks.
The same thinking could - I would say should - apply to the rotary wing world. The advantages are huge. More (cheap) helicopters provides a larger pool of pilots - (even Reserve units, partially manned by Reservists, could operate them). Probably most importantly, it would provide a surge capacity, something the RAAF lost when the helicopters were handed over to the Army, and if stories I have heard are to be believed, the Army manning and retention levels for helicopter pilots are so low that they don't have any surge capacity either.