The FCC says it sees no
need to add a new callsign format for amateur stations, rejecting the second
such request in less than ten years. Thomas Alessi, K1TA, of Stamford, Connecticut, asked the Commission last May to consider issuing Extra Class operators calls consisting of a single-letter prefix, two digits and another single letter (e.g., W22D). According to the ARRL Letter, Alessi said the FCC was running out of desirable 1x2 and 2x1 calls for Extras, and that his idea would add 7800 possible new calls to the pool.
Scot Stone, the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau Mobility Division's Deputy Chief, rejected the petition in a letter to Alessi, noting that approximately 15 million possible callsign combinations currently exist, that the Commission had considered and turned down a similar proposal in 2010, and that "(y)ou have not demonstrated any changed circumstances or other reason that would warrant revisiting this decision."
