MH370 mystery endures, a decade after disappearance

The Malaysia Airlines flight disappeared from radar on March 8, 2014 on its way to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur.

Six Australian citizens and one New Zealand resident of Western Australia were on board.

Australia's sympathies remained with the families and loved ones, Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong said.

"We recognise their ongoing heartache and grief without the answers they seek," she said.

Australia was ready to assist the Malaysian government, Senator Wong said.

"While the searches have not been successful, and families continue to endure such heartache, the effort to find MH370 demonstrates the close co-operation between our countries through difficult times," she said.

"The Australian government is supportive of all practical efforts to find MH370."

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said the anniversary was a chance to remember the lives of the passengers onboard.

"For those families whose loved ones were on board MH370, the passing of time only accentuates their pain, for with each anniversary, that which remains undiscovered, unknown and unresolved becomes a heavier burden to carry," he said.

"It is almost impossible to fathom the suffering and sadness of those families as they held funerals and remembrance services for their loved ones, coffins lowered into the ground without bodies."

Mr Dutton said while it had been 10 years since the disappearance, he was confident there would be answers as to the fate of the plane.

"I am confident that it is not a question of if the mystery will be solved, rather, it is a question of when," he said.

"I commend those oceanographers and marine robotics companies who are eager to continue the search, working hand-in-glove with governments."

Opposition foreign spokesman Simon Birmingham said the anniversary would be difficult for the families of those on board the aircraft.

"For the families, it is a remaining deep personal loss, and one in which trying to solve that mystery would bring some closure, some understanding around that loss," he told Sky News on Friday.

"If there are things that can be done, if there is evidence that shows greater, new searches could make a difference, then of course, that ought to be pursued."

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said he was inclined to reopen the investigation if new evidence came to light.

"If we have a compelling case to reopen the investigation, we will," he said on Thursday.

Families gathered in Malaysia on Sunday and called for another search, with the plane believed to have crashed in the southern Indian Ocean.

American company Ocean Infinity has offered to search for the wreckage but the Malaysian government has requested new evidence before it signs off on another operation.

The company's 2018 search came up empty.

The first search was co-ordinated by Australia in 2014 and involved the Malaysian and Chinese governments before it was officially called off in early 2017.

The government was right to ask for more evidence before it searched again and gave false hope to families, maritime security expert Jennifer Parker, who oversaw the operation, said.

Finding a plane at such depths was a needle in a haystack operation and the actual depths of the southern Indian Ocean remained unknown because they were uncharted, she said.

But new technology could help a new search, oceanography expert Chari Pattiaratchi said.

If one piece was found it was likely the whole wreckage would be too and the cold and calm nature of the bottom of the ocean meant parts would still be preserved, he said.

Australian Associated Press