MH370 search to be scaled back hints Australia PM Tony Abbott near anniversary

Efforts to locate doomed jumbo jet MH370 could be scaled back, hinted Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott near the anniversary of its disappearance.

Speaking only days ahead of the grim landmark on 8 March, Abbott hinted parties seeking the Malaysia Airlines plane may begin winding down.

"I can't promise that the search will go on at this intensity forever but we will continue our very best efforts to resolve this mystery and provide some answers," he told Parliament.

"I do reassure the families of our hope and expectation that the ongoing search will succeed."

But Abbott insisted the search effort was not about to be called off after a fruitless year during which nothing pertinent has been found.

The fate of MH370 has become one of the world's biggest riddles, since it disappeared with 239 people on board last year.

Australia is leading joint search efforts with Malaysia for the plane in a stretch of the south Indian Ocean.