With only a test dummy aboard, Boeing's astronaut capsule Starliner docked with the International Space Station (ISS) for the first time on Friday, a major achievement for the company after years of false starts.

With Starliner's arrival, NASA finally realizes its longtime effort to have crew capsules from competing U.S. companies flying to the space station.

SpaceX already has a running start. Elon Musk's company pulled off the same test three years ago and has since transported 18 astronauts to the space station, as well as tourists.

The only other time Boeing's Starliner flew in space, it never got anywhere near the station, ending up in the wrong orbit.

This time, the overhauled spacecraft made it to the right spot following Thursday's launch and docked at the station 25 hours later. 

If the rest of Starliner's mission goes well, Boeing could be ready to launch its first crew by the end of this year. 

Unlike SpaceX's Dragon capsule that splashes down off the Florida coast, Starliner will aim for an airbag-softened parachute landing in the New Mexico desert next Wednesday.

NASA wants redundancy when it comes to the Florida-based astronaut taxi service. Administrator Bill Nelson said Boeing's long road with Starliner underscores the importance of having two types of crew capsules.

U.S. astronauts relied on Russian rockets once the Space Shuttle program ended in 2011, until SpaceX's first crewed flight in 2020.

(With input from AP)