When Romania entered the war with Nazi Germany against the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, he was appointed Chief of Staff of the Romanian Navy at the Romanian General Staff. He climbed through the ranks as the war progressed, in January 1942 becoming the commander of the Romanian Destroyer Squadron, the most powerful naval formation of the Romanian Navy and of the Axis Powers in the Black Sea, consisting of two destroyers ("Regele-Ferdinand"-class) and two scout cruisers "Aquila"-class). In early 1943, he became the commander of the Romanian Black Sea Fleet, gaining the rank of Rear-Admiral in March that year.