Royal Air Force personnel, both ground staff and aircrew, were accommodated within Oban itself. Most aircrew were billeted in the main seafront hotels, such as The Alexandra, Great Western, Esplanade, Park and Marine (now known as The Regent).

The Sergeants Mess - Marine Hotel.

"The Oban Road" as the Firth of Lorn was denoted, became an important gathering point for the ships and merchantmen engaged in the convoy system. The vessels would form up in the Firth of Lorn and off Ardmucknish before crossing the Atlantic. German reconnaissance flights in long range JU88 aircraft from Stavanger in Norway soon established this fact although bomber operations were hampered by the lack of range of the HE111 bombers belonging to the 5th Air Fleet. Nonetheless, raids did occur.