Capt Fathom:
Actually, starting at the gate not a problem these days. Times have changed.
Thanks for this - glad to hear this situation has changed for the better. My ears still ringing from abuse for starting on the bay at Singapore in a B744. A long time ago I confess, and my last few years in an airline - also a long time ago now - were on the B777 which came with seemingly the world's most reliable APU....
Cheers!