I suppose this is possible although I find it unlikely. Is there a type of ARCA order that flashes? These all looked like straight limit orders to me.
You don't understand what I mean by quote flicker. Quote flicker is not caused by ARCA or other ECNs. It is caused by customers who rapidly submit and cancel orders and rapidly change order prices on ECNs. This effect can be produced by large numbers of customers submitting straight limit orders manually, or by one single customer using an automated straight limit order submission algorithm. My reference to advanced order types on INET was to explain how INET might have been able to wedge in an order perhaps during the fleeting window of opportunity during which ARCA's opposing flickering price quote had perhaps temporarily vanished due to quote flicker.
Yes I understand it. The problem is that in this instance there was very little volume in pre-market trading and I could track each individual order in the limit book. No other bids came in after the initial onslaught. So all these limit bids came in, no more came in, and it did not seem like any of the original bids were refreshing themselves (which might give an INET order a chance to slip in).