Comment by mrguyorama

>Modern two-engine planes like the 787 have an auxiliary power unit (APU)

Where "modern" here includes jet airliners made in the 70s yes.

>It is also needed to start the main engines

The engines need an air source, and the APU can be an air source, but at one point at least, big airlines preferred using ground hookup provided air sources for starting, in order to save gas. Next time you fly, look at the jetway. There will be a large yellow duct system underneath it that can be hooked up to the plane to provide pneumatic pressure and air conditioning air without starting the APU. There are similar hookups for electrical power so that a plane won't drain its battery during routine turnover operations.

The bottom price flights I've taken recently don't seem to hook either up though, preferring instead to start the APU during taxi to the gate while shutting down one engine, shut down the other engine once they are at the gate, and reverse the process to taxi back out to the runway. The turnaround time is so short, and the required work to clean and restock the cabin so little, I bet they just don't pay for ground hookups.