HUNTER FLYPAST: Where To See The Joint Strike Fighters

There'll be a pretty impressive sight in the skies of the Hunter this morning.

The first two F-35A joint strike fighter jets will be arriving at their new home at RAAF Base Williamtown.

To mark their arrival they'll be doing a flypast around Port Stephens, Newcastle and Lake Macquarie, joined by up to three F/A-18A Classic Hornets.

They'll be flying as low as 75m in some areas, travelling between 500-550km/h.

Flypast route

• The flypast is scheduled to commence from approximately 9:50am off Tomaree Head and into Port Stephens. The jets will fly in proximity to Nelson Bay and Hawks Nest/Tea Gardens, before heading out the Heads and turning south.
• The formation will track along the Tomaree coast and Worimi Conservation Lands, to Nobbys Lighthouse and down the coast to Redhead.
• Looping back over the top of Lake Macquarie, the jets will overfly Newcastle city at approximately 10:00am, before heading north towards Williamtown via Raymond Terrace and Medowie, landing at RAAF Base Williamtown by approximately 10:10am.

The air force says there will be very limited parking and public viewing areas around the RAAF Base.

Two small designated viewing areas will be marked at the end of the runway, near Nelson Bay Road and Medowie Road. Limited car parking is available off Nelson Bay Road.

Newcastle Airport is warning passengers to expect significant traffic congestion in the area.