WASHINGTON Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci said on Wednesday the airline is “anxious” to begin taking deliveries of the larger Boeing 737 MAX 10 to help it carry more passengers once the plane is certified.

Boeing must first win approval from the Federal Aviation Administration for its MAX 7 before it can get approval for the MAX 10.

“Basically we like bigger airplanes,” Minicucci told Reuters in an interview Wednesday.

In October, Alaska Airlines said it was exercising options to purchase 52 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft for delivery between 2024 and 2027. The company said Thursday it has 48 MAX 10s on order.

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chris Reese)