Tutschek downed his 27th foe, raising the wing's score to 18. However, on 15 March 1918, Adolf Ritter von Tutschek was killed in action. With JG II tasked to support 18th Armee, and only six days remaining until the offensive kicked off, replacement of the JG II commander was crucial. Hauptmann Rudolf Berthold, a Pour le Merite winner credited with 28 victories was appointed to the post. His appointment was problematic. The battered and narcotic-dependent hero was still recovering from his latest wound and his second near-death hospitalization; his paralyzed infected right arm was in a sling. Although he could not fly because his recuperation was incomplete, he had talked a doctor into returning him to his dual command of Jagdstaffel 18 (Jasta 18) and Jagdgruppe 7 (Hunting Group 7) on 1 March 1918. On 10 March, his best friend, Hauptmann Hans-Joachim Buddecke, was killed in action while under his command. A grieving, ill, and addicted grounded pilot was appointed to command of a wing of fliers on the eve of a huge offensive. The Berthold swap Berthold wanted to trade what had been his Jagdstaffel 18 (Jasta 18) for one of the Jagdstaffeln of JG II, so that he would have command of a unit with which he was familiar. He was refused. He then immediately chose Jagdstaffel 15 (Jasta 15) as his Stab Staffel (headquarters squadron). It was customary for an incoming commander to bring along two or three staff members from his old unit to his new one. Berthold did just that, on March 19, 1918. Then, on 20 March, Berthold stretched this custom to swap a large number of pilots from Jasta 18 to Jasta 15 – this did not include Leutnant der Reserve August Raben, as his orders had him doing the reverse, as he transferred in from Jasta 15 to take command of Jasta 18 a few days before the "Berthold swap" was to occur, with Raben assuming command of Jasta 18 as an independent squadron on 14 March 1918. Berthold also added a contingent of maintenance crew from the earlier ground staff of his "old" Jasta 18 unit. The large number of transferred personnel between Jasta 15 and Jasta 18 effectively made for a unit trade, even if the jagdstaffeln numbers did not change. The day before the spring offensive, JG II was ready for battle. Berthold had moved in with his Pfalz