The Institute staff consists of RIAP Fellows – the scientists and scholars, permanently employed by the Institute, and RIAP Contributing Fellows, who are temporarily engaged under contracts. They are distinguished specialists in physics, astronomy, history, psychology, and other disciplines. 

The Scientific Council and Advisory Board of the Institute include such Russian and Ukrainian specialists in the UFO problem and SETI field as: 

• A. V. Beletsky, M. A. (historian studying pre-1917 UFO waves in Russia),
• V. A. Buerakov, Ph. D. (a noted physicist developing a UFO model in terms of the theory of superstrong electromagnetic field),
• E. A. Ermilov, Ph. D. (specialist in radio detection of aerial anomalous phenomena),
• V. N. Fomenko, Ph. D. (investigator of the famous Vashka find, as well as other supposed ET artifacts),
• L. M. Gindilis, Ph. D. (astronomer and SETI expert),
• P. I. Kutniuk, Ph. D. (discoverer of the Mzha UFO landing traces),
• Y. N. Morozov, Ph. D. (a leading Russian investigator of the problem of paleovisits),
• Y. V. Platov, Ph. D. (Vice-Chairman of the Russian Academic UFO Study Group),
• A. F. Pugach, Ph. D. (an eminent Ukrainian astronomer and SETI specialist),
• V. G. Tupalo, Ph. D. (President of the aerospace company Vertical),
• A. D. Ursul, Ph. D. (President of the Russian Academy of Cosmonautics),
• V. K. Zhuravlev, Ph. D. (a leading Russian specialist in the problem of the Tunguska explosion). 

  Dr. Vladimir V. Rubtsov is the Director of the Institute and Editor of its newsletter.

The Advisory Board comprehends also a group of well-known Western scientists, scholars and engineers – 

• V.–J. Ballester Olmos, M. S. (Spain),
• T. E. Bullard, Ph. D. (USA),
• R. W. Gray, B. S., M. S., M. A. (USA),
• R. F. Haines, Ph. D. (USA),
• J. McCampbell, B. S. (USA),
• A. Meessen, Ph. D. (Belgium), 
• G. Sassoon, M. A. (United Kingdom).