I'm not sure how you're connecting that quora discussion to what we were saying above, but I think the confusion comes from what 'thrust to weight ratio' means.

I'm not sure how you're connecting that quora discussion to what we were saying above, but I think the confusion comes from what 'thrust to weight ratio' means. Helicopters and planes are both pushing down on air to generate lift. The lift generated has to be equal or greater to the weight for the aircraft to fly. Thrust can mean many things (at least colloquially). As discussed in the quora you linked, a helicopter will have a defined power to weight ratio that allows it to fly (maintain level flight) in its 'normal' flight envelope. There are a number of things the pilot can do that causes the aircraft to 'push down harder' on the air. One of these is flying close to the ground (the ground effect) which is sort of like pushing against the ground as well as the air, and another is by moving horizontally (usually forwards, like a plane, causing transational lift). Both of these allow the aircraft to maintain height while using less power than if it was hovering, but to do so it is still generating enough lift to counteract gravity.