The rapidly developing market for high strength and high stiffness carbon fibre-reinforced composites demands among others for reliable damage evaluation methods for very high cycle fatigue loading (VHCF). For the analysis of the widely unknown damage behaviour at VHCF loading specific test principles and a shaker based fatigue test stand are developed. Key requirements herein are: high frequency fatigue (f > 150 Hz) without significant warming of the specimen, homogeneous stress distribution and minor through thickness stress gradients as well as adjustable mean stresses for the fatigue testing regarding specific failure modes. Using numerical and experimental investigations a promising solution for the given problem has been found in form of a shear force free bending test stand and a specifically layered specimen.