By David Shepardson, Allison Lampert and Tim Hepher (Reuters) -Spirit AeroSystems said on Tuesday it would receive up to $350 million in advance payments from its largest customer Boeing, giving the struggling supplier a lifeline as it burns cash after four consecutive years of losses.

There had been speculation about what kind of help could be coming from Boeing after Spirit AeroSystems issued a "going concern" warning last week. A week after Spirit AeroSystems issued a warning about its ability to operate moving forward,

Spirit AeroSystems and Boeing are close to reaching a funding agreement that would give a cash lifeline to the struggling Boeing supplier, an industry source familiar with the matter said.

Around 700 Spirit AeroSystems employees are being furloughed as a result of the ongoing strike by Boeing machinists that began last month, the company announced Friday.

Spirit AeroSystems said on Tuesday that Boeing will pay a total of up to $350 million in advance payments to the firm, providing the struggling supplier a lifeline as it continues to burn cash after four consecutive years of losses.

By David Shepardson and Allison Lampert (Reuters) -Spirit AeroSystems said Tuesday that planemaker Boeing will pay up to $350 million in advance payments to the firm, providing the struggling supplier a lifeline as it continues to burn cash after four consecutive years of losses.

Boeing has agreed to pay Spirit AeroSystems up to $350 million in advance to keep producing products for it as the fuselage supplier works through a liquidity crunch. The jet maker said Tuesday that the advance payments are intended to help Spirit address high levels of inventory and lower operational cash flows.