The 369th Reinforced Infantry Regiment was devastated in the ensuing battle, and Pavičić elected to leave the surviving Croatian soldiers, and return to Croatia. He was killed on 20 January 1943. There are several conflicting accounts of how he died. One account holds that the airplane in which he was travelling was shot down by the Soviets, while another states that he was executed by the Germans for wishing to leave the battlefield.[1] He was replaced by Lieutenant ColonelMarko Mesić on 21 January.[2]
de Bruyne, Eddy; Rikmenspoel, Marc (2004). For Rex and for Belgium: Léon Degrelle and Walloon Political & Military Collaboration, 1940–45. Gliwice: Helion. ISBN 978-1-87462-232-1.
Dizdar, Zdravko; Grčić, Marko; Ravlić, Slaven; Stuparić, Darko (1997). Tko je tko u NDH (in Croatian). Zagreb: Minerva. ISBN 978-953-6377-03-9.