Originally Posted by av8boy
OK. Would you be so kind as to play "help the Yank" again? Why the 'conspicuity codes?' Is this not a discreet code environment? Granted, I've only been doing this for about 26 years, but I've only had to work four nondiscreet codes in my career: 1200 (VFR), 7500, 7600, and 7700. What's with assigning nondiscreet codes for conspicuity? Why not a discreet code?
From just a pilot's perspective - The US system seems to allow any controller who might issue a code to 'push a button' and get a unique code from a large pool; where as, the European system seems to have many codes pre-allocated and hence a limited (possibly nil) pool of codes for general allocation. I suspect that, in the UK, codes that are issued to all flights not on an 'airways flight plan' come from a set that are preallocated to that controlling unit and therefore frequently not unique.
I would be interested in hearing more from the controllers both sides of the pond if my 'user perception' is broadly correct.