A court in Beijing was due to start compensation hearings on Monday for the families of Chinese victims who were on Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 which disappeared almost a decade ago.

The jet vanished on March 8, 2014, carrying 239 people – mostly from China – en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.

Hardly any trace of the plane was found in a 120,000-square kilometre Indian Ocean search zone and the Australian-led operation, the largest in aviation history, was suspended in early 2017.

A US exploration firm launched a private hunt for MH370 in 2018, but it ended after several months without success.

The China Daily newspaper reported earlier the hearings would take place starting on Monday, citing Jiang Hui, a representative of the families of the missing passengers.

Jiang, whose mother was on flight MH370, wrote on social media this month the hearings would take place at Beijing's People's Court in Chaoyang district and continue until mid-December.

He had also said the families were quite pleased to see the progress of the case, and hoped for a favourable interim or final verdict.

Families of the victims, as well as media, gathered outside the court on Monday morning. (Additional reporting by AFP)