The Teradako-ken TK-3 was a prototype, eight-to-ten passenger light transport monoplane built by Nippon Koku Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha as a short-range transport for civil use at the request of Imperial Japanese Airways to replace its aging fleet of Airspeed Envoys and Fokker Super Universals.

In 1939, the Imperial Japanese Army revived the project to meet its urgent requirement for a light transport and liaison aircraft, and they instructed Nippon to develop the design as the Ki-59.

[1] The Ki-59 was a high-wing, cantilever monoplane with a fixed tailwheel landing gear and conventional single vertical tail surfaces.

It was powered by two 450 hp (336 kW) Hitachi Ha-13a radial engines, and other modifications to the design were made to meet Army requirements.

Despite the more powerful engines and modifications sponsored by the Japanese Army, the Ki-59 remained a poor performer and saw little service before being replaced by the more capable Tachikawa Ki-54.