Known originally as the Caribou II, the DHC-5 Buffalo tactical transport was basically an enlarged DHC-4 with turboprop engines and a T-tail. The DHC-5 had been developed to meet the requirements of the US Army for a transport that would be able to carry loads such as the Pershing missile, a 105-mm howitzer or 3/4-ton truck. Development costs were shared by the US Army, Canadian government, and de Havilland Canada; the first of these transports made its maiden flight on 9 April 1964.