Plasticity of the C15-CaAl2 Laves phase at room temperature

•We find that the {112} plane seems to be dominant for plasticity, although previous literature lists deformation on the {111} plane as the dominant mechanism for C15 Laves phases.•We could quantify the CRSS for both slip systems, namely {111}〈11¯0〉 and {112}〈11¯0〉, as approximately the same at ∼ 1 GPa.•Our TEM investigations confirm the [11¯0] Burgers vector type by using the g∙b analysis.•Together, these insights also allow us to explain why the crack and slip trace distribution around indentations varies systematically with crystal orientation.