On 9 July, RAF bombers attacked Stavanger-Sola. The bombers were intercepted by fighters from II. Gruppe and Carganico shot down two Bristol Blenheim bombers. Carganico was promoted to Oberleutnant (first lieutenant) on 1 September. He claimed his fourth aerial victory on 14 October over a Lockheed Hudson aircraft. On 9 November, II. Gruppe of JG 77 left Norway and headed to Aalborg Airfield and then to the airfield Brest-Süd, present-day BAN Lanvéoc-Poulmic, at the Roadstead of Brest in northwestern France by 23 November. Patrolling the French coast, Carganico claimed his fifth victory on 30 November over a Blenheim bomber. Squadron leader On 1 February 1941, a new I. Gruppe of JG 77 was created under the command of Hauptmann Walter Grommes. This unit was based at Stavanger-Sola and was tasked with providing fighter escort for German shipping on the southern and western Norwegian coast. Command of 1. Staffel (1st squadron) of JG 77 was given to Oberleutnant Carganico who had been transferred. As a commander, authors Bergström and Mikhailov characterize Carganico as a hard-core Nazi, unsympathetic and ambitious. On 24 May, Carganico claimed his sixth aerial victory when he shot down Blenheim bomber L9267 from No. 114 Squadron. On 4 June 1941, 1. Staffel was detached from the Gruppe and relocated to Kirkenes Airfield in preparation of Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union. In northern Norway, 1. Staffel became part of IV. Gruppe of JG 77 which in September was referred to as Jagdgruppe z.b.V. Petsamo (zur besonderen Verwendung—for special deployment) and headed by Major Henning Strümpell. German forces launched Operation Barbarossa on 22 June 1941. On 25 June, the Staffel moved to Petsamo-Luostari as part of Operation Silver Fox. During the following weeks, Carganico claimed further aerial victories, not all of which can be exactly dated. On 29 June, a flight from 1. Staffel intercepted eight Beriev MBR-2 flying boats from 118 RAP (Radzvedyvatel'nyy Aviatsionnyy Polk—Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment). They were returning from a bombing mission to Liinakhamari. Three MBR-2 flying boats were shot down, two by Carganico. The 2. Gebirgs Division (2nd Mountain Division) attempted to cross the Zapadnaya Litsa on 13 July. In support of this attack, JG 77 flew a number of combat air patrols. Attacking the Soviet airfield at Shonguy, Carganico claimed the destruction of a Polikarpov I-16 fighter. Following his 27th aerial victory claimed, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the