BERLIN, March 6 (Reuters) - One of Boeing's ( BA )

biggest customers, Dubai carrier Emirates, threw its support

behind a possible Boeing ( BA ) takeover of Spirit AeroSystems ( SPR ),

saying it would be a step towards resolving the planemaker's

industrial crisis.

U.S. regulators have been carrying out factory audits and

reported findings at both Boeing ( BA ) and supplier Spirit following

the dramatic blowout of a dummy door on an almost-full 737 MAX 9

airliner in January.

Emirates Airline President Tim Clark told reporters in

Berlin that Boeing ( BA ) should address its quality problems as

quickly as possible with the undiluted attention of its board

and top management or face questions over its future.

Boeing ( BA ) said last week it was in talks to buy its former

subsidiary Spirit. Separately, industry sources said Spirit and

Boeing's ( BA ) European rival Airbus had explored the idea of Airbus

taking over some Spirit operations that supply parts for its

jets.

Spirit makes around 70% of the 737 MAX and builds the

forward fuselage for the 787 and future 777X, both of which

Emirates has ordered. It was spun off from Boeing ( BA ) in 2005.

"I never understood that at the time. It would be like us

saying we are going to take our engineering and operations and

give them to someone else to run," Clark, one of the industry's

most influential leaders, said on the sidelines of the ITB

travel fair.

"This is anathema to our way of thinking but that is what

they did and I think it has been a problem for them ever since."

Asked how long he thought it would take for Boeing ( BA ) to get

itself back on track, Clark said: "It depends how much resource

they put in it. It requires the undiluted focus of the board, to

the exclusion of everything else.

"They must, all of them, deal with this problem first and

foremost. Don't worry about anything else, just get this job

done. Because if you don't, your company will go out of

existence. Another event like this will almost cripple the

company," he said, adding the U.S, government and travelling

public expected nothing less.

"I think (Boeing ( BA ) CEO Dave) Calhoun and his colleagues are on

it, but ...it's up to them," he said.

Boeing ( BA ) said last week it would develop an action plan that

demonstrates "profound change" and that its leadership team was

totally committed to meeting this challenge.