Gregory Korte

USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — President Obama has approved more than $3 billion for a new-and-improved Air Force One — but the White House emphasized Monday that Obama's successor will be the first president to fly it.

In fact, with an expected delivery date of 2023, it could be the successor to Obama's successor.

"Let me say it this way: The president doesn’t need a new plane right now. But in eight or nine years, whoever that president is, they'll need a new plane," said White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest. "The president will be the first one to tell you that the plane he has right now serves him quite well."

Earnest was responding to a New York Times story about the project, which features some eye-popping technology:

The Air Force selected Boeing as the maker of the next plane earlier this year. The 747-8 that will serve as the frame is 250 feet long with a range of nearly 7,800 miles and 66,500 pounds of engine thrust. Once modified, it will be capable of midair refueling, hardened against the electromagnetic pulse of a nuclear explosion and almost certainly equipped with defenses to deflect heat-seeking missiles.

Actually, Air Force One isn't a plane, but a call sign for whatever plane the president flies in. Two planes currently have that primary duty — both now 25 years old — although smaller planes are sometimes used when the president take short flights or flies into smaller airports.