Lepel-West at Lyepyel on 5 July. From this airfield, II. Gruppe flew combat air patrols and fighter escort missions to combat areas near Vitebsk and Haradok, supporting Panzergruppe 2 and 3 in their advance to Vitebsk and Polotsk. On 12 July, the Gruppe moved to Kamary, an airfield in the western parts of Vitebsk. Ten day later on 22 July, II. Gruppe advanced to the airfield Andrejewka near Smolensk where it stayed until 5 August. Operating from Andrejewka, Nemitz shot down a Petlyakov Pe-2 bomber on 23 July, a DB-3 and Tupolev SB bomber on 26 July and another DB-3 bomber on 27 July. II. Gruppe was ordered to relocate to Soltsy, west of Lake Ilmen, on 5 August in support of the 16th Army and Army Group North. Here, the Gruppe supported the fighting south of Lake Ilmen, and the German attacks on Shlisselburg, Leningrad and the Soviet fleet at Kronstadt. Operating from Soltsy, Nemitz claimed an I-18 fighter, referring to the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-1 fighter, shot down on 18 August near Chudovo. On 24 August, II. Gruppe was ordered to an airfield at Spasskaya Polist on the river Polist, south of Chudovo and north of Novgorod on Lake Ilmen, supporting the 18th Army in its advance towards the Neva and Lake Ladoga. Here on 30 August, Nemitz shot down another I-18 fighter. Since German forces had reached the proximity of Leningrad, II. Gruppe was ordered to Lyuban, approximately to Leningrad and located on the road to Moscow. The Gruppe stayed at Lyuban until 30 September, flying missions to Shlisselburg, Leningrad and Mga. Fighting in this combat area, Nemitz claimed two aerial victories in September 1941. On 13 September, he was credited with the destruction of an DB-3 bomber, followed by an Ilyushin Il-2 ground attack aircraft on 23 September. On 2 October, German forces launched Operation Typhoon, the failed strategic offensive to capture Moscow. In support of this offensive, II. Gruppe was moved to Stabna, located just north of Smolensk. On 5 October, Nemitz claimed a Pe-2 bomber shot down. On 4 November, II. Gruppe had moved to Ruza. Here, Nemitz claimed his last aerial victories of 1941 when on 14 November he was credited with the destruction of two I-18 fighters, taking his total to 13 aerial victories. Eastern Front In late January 1942, II. Gruppe was withdrawn from the Eastern Front and sent to Jesau near Königsberg