This is why thread drift is good because people do have areas of expertise that might not otherwise be uncovered if we just stick tightly to the thread theme.
Good post aa777888 - I was told that even with the newer 406 beacons, the important positional information is included in the second half of the transmission burst and that can sometimes be missed off or corrupted.
Classic (violet picture) homing is still essential in difficult terrain and when there are multiple beacons. I have homed to 243.0 and 121.5 transmissions in mountainous and forested terrain where 100m can make a huge difference to where you put the search teams.
The only problem with the sat-trackers is that you have to be conscious to use them, much like a personal ELT whereas a correctly installed aircraft ELT should Tx providing it survives the impact.
M32K - you are right but there is enough evidence in the report to show a lack of aviation professionalism or even self-preservation that seems all too common in the light helicopter owner-community, that is not to tar all with the same brush but we keep seeing common and very human failures in these type of accidents. Darwinism at work I suppose.