BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan (AP) — American and Russian space veterans, along with a newcomer, have joined the crew of the International Space Station.

The new face is Russian Elena Servova, who arrived with her colleagues aboard a Soyuz spacecraft which docked early Friday. Servova is making her first journey into space and is the first Russian woman cosmonaut since 1997.

The new crew will stay six-months, joining three others already on board.

Since the retirement of the space shuttle fleet, Russian Soyuz spacecraft have served as the only means to ferry crew to and from the space outpost, the latest price tag being $71 million per seat.

Earlier this month, NASA picked Boeing and SpaceX to transport astronauts to the station in the next few years.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.