Porous laminated SiC scaffolds with initial solid loadings of 20–40vol% were prepared by freeze casting and then sintered at 1200°C for 2h in air to produce a SiO 2 layer. Subsequently, the preforms were pressureless-infiltrated by an Al–12wt% Si–10wt% Mg alloy in a N 2 atmosphere, forming a lamellar-interpenetrated structure in the composites. The resultant composites were investigated by compression tests and ultrasonic pulse echo measurements in the longitudinal and transverse directions, exhibiting weak orthotropic properties. The highest compressive strength (722±35MPa) was achieved in the samples with 30vol% SiC in a longitudinal direction and the largest elastic modulus (163GPa) was exhibited in the 40vol% SiC composites.