Schlacht von Rschew
II./KG 3 continued to support Army Group Centre and formed part of VIII "Fliegerkorps". It probably operated from Orsha 22 February 1942. In May 1942 it moved to Kharkov and was involved in the Second Battle of Kharkov and lost is commander Major Waldemar Krüger killed on 22 May. He was replaced by Günther Dörffel. 6th Staffel was trained and deployed as a train-busting unit equipped with the Ju 88C and P. The group returned to Shatalovka 26 May and then to Velikiye Luki on 14 June. It bombed Moscow on 23 July 1942 and supported the German 9th army in the Battle of Rzhev, Summer 1942. The group was assigned to support the Second Panzer Army for a time. As the Battles of Rzhev concluded, and the front in the centre stabilised, operational losses for the group stood at 70 aircrew over the spring and summer, 1943.