The original vision was developed by an informal collaboration of W.H. Beckett and Col. K.P. Rice, who met at China Lake Naval Test Station. It was for a rugged, simple close air support aircraft integrated with forward ground operations. At the time, the Army had not yet developed armed helicopters, and the Air Force was uninterested in close air support.

The aircraft was to operate from expedient forward air bases using roads as runways. Even in jungles, roads would be available. So, it needed a 20 ft wing span and a 6.5 ft tread. Speed was to range from very slow, to medium subsonic, with much longer loiter times than a jet. Efficient turboprop engines would give better performance than piston aircraft. Weapons were to be mounted on the centerline to get efficient unranged aiming like a P-38. The inventors' favored strafing weapons were self-loading recoilless rifles, which could deliver aimed explosive shells with less recoil than cannons, and a lower per-round weight than rockets. The airframe would avoid the back blast.

They developed a basic platform meeting the requirements, then attempted to build a fiberglass prototype in a garage. The effort produced enthusiastic supporters and an informal pamphlet describing the concept. W.H. Beckett retired from the Marine Corps, and went to work at North American to sell the aircraft.

Rice states: "The military definition of STOL (500' to a 50' obstacle) allows takeoff and landing in most of the areas in which limited war might be fought. In addition, the airplane was designed to use roads so that operation would even be possible in jungle areas where clearings are few and far between. As a result the wingspan was to be limited to twenty feet and a heavy trailing arm type landing gear with a tread of 6.5 ft was provided for operation from roads. Float operation was to be feasible... "

"...it is quite feasible to design the various components so that it can be disassembled easily and stored in a box that would fit in a 6x6 truck bed together with the equipment needed for re-assembly in the field. It could thus be transported by amphibious shipping and either heli-lifted or driven ashore by a 6x6 truck."

The Bronco began with a specification approved by the U.S. Navy, Air Force and Army, a "tri-service" specification called "LARA" (the Light Armed Reconnaissance Aircraft), issued at the end of 1963. Retired Marine Corps aviators K.P. Rice and William H. Beckett originated the LARA concept as an aircraft with very small wingspans of around 20 feet that could land in nearly any small clearing and use the same ammunition and fuel as ground troops used. His "L2 VMA" concept also would have the aircraft ground-mobile so it could be co-located with ground units and not require runways and air bases.

LARA was based on a perceived need for a new type of "jungle fighting" versatile light attack and observation aircraft. Existing aircraft (the O-1 Bird Dog and O-2 Skymaster) were perceived as obsolescent, with too small a cargo capacity for this flexible role.

The specification called for a twin-engined, two-man aircraft that could carry at least 2,400 lb (1,100 kg) of cargo, six paratroops or stretchers, and be stressed for +8 and -3 Gs (basic aerobatic ability). It also had to be launchable from an aircraft carrier, fly at least 350 mph (560 km/h), take off in 800 feet (240 m) and convert to an amphibian.

Various armament had to be carried, including four 7.62 mm machine guns with 2,000 rounds, and external weapons including a 20 mm gun pod and Sidewinder missiles.

Eleven proposals were submitted, nine of them were the Grumman Model 134R tandem-seat version of the already fielded OV-1 Mohawk observation/attack aircraft (the Marine Corps dropped out of the program in 1958), Goodyear GA 39, the Beech PD-183, Douglas D-855, General Dynamics/Convair Model 48 Charger, the Helio 1320, the Lockheed CL-760, a Martin design and the North American/Rockwell NA-300.

In August 1964, the NA-300 was selected. A contract for seven prototype aircraft was issued in October 1964.

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