A colonel, he was the commander of the Croatian Home Guard military academy from July to August 1942.

In August, he was named commander of the 369th Croatian Reinforced Infantry Regiment that was to fight alongside other Axis forces on the Eastern Front.

Immediately afterwards, Pavičić and his regiment left the Independent State of Croatia to participate in the Battle of Stalingrad.

[1] The 369th Reinforced Infantry Regiment was devastated in the ensuing battle, and Pavičić elected to leave the surviving Croatian soldiers, and return to Croatia.

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.