1) Sandwich beams made of GFRP core and aluminum face sheets were impacted by a rigid projectile at velocities from 25-115 m/s using a pneumatic gun.
2) The sandwich beams exhibited different failure modes including large inelastic deformation, core shearing, and delamination.
3) Mid-span deflection, energy absorption, and velocity drop after impact were measured and found to vary with impact velocity, with the beams absorbing more energy at lower velocities. The ballistic limit was approximately 50 m/s.