The Australia Day ceremony on Lake Burley Griffin will be a little different this year.

The traditional flag raising event is being replaced by a helicopter flyover, due to recent changes to the Regatta Point venue.

The eight metre flagpole was removed in November last year due to safety concerns after it was damaged by Canberra’s massive hailstorm.

With the flagpole no longer in service, a Navy helicopter carrying a giant Australian flag is expected to fly over the event for around 20 minutes tomorrow morning.