Wilmore and Williams watched the liftoff via a live link sent to the space station, prompting a cheer of "Go Dragon!" from Williams, NASA deputy program manager Dina Contella said.
NASA ultimately decided that Boeing's Starliner was too risky after a cascade of thruster troubles and helium leaks marred its trip to the orbiting complex.
By the time they return, the pair will have logged more than eight months in space. They expected to be gone just a week when they signed up for Boeing's first astronaut flight.
The switch in rides left it to NASA's Nick Hague and Russia's Alexander Gorbunov to retrieve Needham native Suni Williams and fellow astronaut Butch Wilmore.
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