In June 1942 II "Gruppe" was transferred back to the East, where it joined in the advance on the Stalingrad front, suffering heavy losses. During the Battle of Stalingrad, Stab./JG 3 were based at Pitomnik Airfield, where Wilcke directed all day fighter operations over the city. During the summer offensive of 1942 the "Geschwaderstab"/JG 3 recorded 137 victories, of which Wilcke claimed 97.