Phase 1 Flight Time VS Time in Service?
 

The phase 1 time requirement of 40 or 25 hours, per your engine & prop set-up just says 40 hours in my Ops Limits.

Most fixed gear aircraft have a very hard time capturing a real Time in Service number.

From FAR 1: Time in Service, with respect to maintenance time records, means the time from the moment an aircraft leaves the surface of the earth until it touches it at the next point of landing.

Flight Time is very easy to capture if you are using a oil pressure switch and a time recording device.

From FAR 1: Flight Time means: (1) Pilot time that commences when an aircraft moves under its own power for the purpose of flight and ends when the aircraft comes to rest after landing; (Powered Aircraft).

Since the Ops limits do not define which time should be used for the phase 1 fly-off, what does everyone use?

Flight Time and Time in Service are the only times recognized in the regs and Tach Time and Hobbs Time do not equate to either FT or TIS.

The conventional Hobbs meter runs off an oil pressure switch. However, it will record time spent taxiing from the fuel pumps to the hangar, which is not flight time.
I have an electronic flight timer which runs whenever RPM exceeds 1500 rpm. That's what I used; not saying that's the legally correct answer, just that's what I used.

It doesn't matter what you use as long as you log how you did it and you can justifiably prove 40hrs (or 20) at your FAA hearing.:eek:
That said, I'll be using calendar and watch "wheel up and wheel down" time, backed up by hobbs time (which will be greater).

Same here, part of the GRT EIS functions.

I use Hobbs time. Since the operating limitations don't specify, I use engine run time. The purpose is to verify proper action if every aspect of engine, prop and airframe. Time taxiing and run-ups are critical as well as actual time in the air. For my pilot logbook, I log chock to chock. For Phase 1, I use Hobbs. For oil changes is usually go by tach.