D.S.
Your summary post #5484 states
A few other things we know(/might know) and notes
- ELT never activates
but your earlier summary post #5473 states
- there are no Black box or ELT transmissions found in the area
I'd stick with the original wording about the ELT. We don't know that the ELT never activated, but we do know that no one has reported (publicly) an ELT signal detected by satellite, from the air or ground in the area. I've worked enough ELT searches to safely say that an ELT can activate but not be detected except within a very short distance, measured in tens of yards or meters.
Mike