Parts of the division were incorporated into the Korps Abteilung A, with each regiment contributing a battalion sized unit as a 'regiment gruppe'.

After participating in the first great encirclement at Minsk, the 161st had to march hard to catch up with the fighting to the east, eventually helping to relieve the mobile units of 3rd Panzer Group for other tasks.

In August 1942 the 161st sector was again the focus of a major Soviet offensive, this time Zhukov's attempt to eliminate the Rzhev salient.

"In the morning of 4 August, Thirty-first {Russian} Army surged into and over the 161st Infantry division on an eight-mile stretch east of Zubstov.

The situation for 9th Army was precarious and its grip on Rzhev tenuous, so in spite of its battered state the 161st had to stay in line, as reinforcements were rushed to the area.

[6] The fighting continued into the second half of September, and after finally subsiding, the depleted division was posted to France to rebuild in November 1942.

In November 1943 the remaining combat elements of the division were incorporated into Korps Abteilung A, and the formation was effectively dissolved.

These forces blasted huge holes in the Axis front and within 3 days encircled most of the ill-fated 6th Army, including the 161st Division, near Jassy.