[1] Tebet itself was developed from the early 1960s to house people displaced by the construction of the Gelora Bung Karno sports complex at Senayan.

The idea for the construction of the monument came from President Sukarno who wanted a statue as a homage to Indonesian airways, and to the conquest of space.

[4] The chosen location was in front of the headquarters of the Indonesian Air Force, which was designed by Friedrich Silaban, but which has since been demolished and replaced by the Wisma Aldiron Dirgantara office complex.

[3] The location was strategic because it was also the gateway to Jakarta for visitors coming from Halim Perdanakusuma Airport.

Rumors spread that the monument depicted the device to extract eyes said to have been used by the Communist Party of Indonesia during the alleged torture of the kidnapped generals, although this was repeatedly denied by President Sukarno.