not really, that's the job of the aircraft flight control computers. They're suppose to keep the aircraft in its flight envelope at all time even if the pilot pushes it too hard.
JF-17 has fly by wire, which means it has flight envelope protection for +8/-3 Gs. The wing cannot just disintegrate..... Something is not right here
Although a stall could bring it down, but we don't know if that was the cause
You are essentially -- correct.
An aircraft's flight envelope contains the physical limits, such as maximum altitude, speed, etc., that the aircraft can operate without departure of controlled flight. Each aircraft have unique flight envelope.
That said, the F-16's maximum rated altitude is (rounded off) 15,000 meters. Does that mean the aircraft will spin out of control at 15,001 meters ? No, it does not. What 'maximum altitude' really mean is that if the pilot want to perform all the maneuvers that made the F-16 famous, he should remain within (below) that altitude limit. If the pilot decide to breach that maximum altitude limit -- for whatever reason -- the jet's FBW system will continue to work to its best capabilities to execute any maneuver commanded.
For speculation's sake, let us say that the F-16's central air data computer (CADC)...
Repairing a F-16 Central Air Data Computer (CADC)
...Cannot compute altitude at 15,100 meters because the air is too thin. The pilot insist that he must reach 15,200 meters. As the air gets thinner and thinner, the jet's entire avionics system struggles to compensate for decreasing static pressure at 15,000 meters altitude. At 15,150 meters, any commanded maneuver may result in excessive flight control surfaces travel because the CADC was not designed to deal with such thin air, thereby the CADC tells the flight control computer (FLCC) that (false) fact, so the FLCC commanded the flight control surfaces to travels as much as possible, trying to grab as much aerodynamic forces as possible, so the jet departs from controlled flight. It does not matter if air density at 15,200 meters altitude is sufficient for the jet to execute maneuvers, the CADC was simply inadequately designed to deal with that altitude, thereby creating a flight envelope limit of 15,000 meters altitude.
FACT: Flight envelope is an artificially created set of rules for a specific aircraft.
Can we -- with software based flight controls laws -- prevent an aircraft from leaving its estimated flight envelope ? Absolutely we can. But the reason it is not wise to do so is because the technology is still limited in dealing with variables that may arise in flight, especially in combat maneuvers.
For example...One tactic to deceive/seduce an IR sensor is to flight straight into the sun, so a pilot may need to exceed AOA limits temporarily to save his life. The jet's FLCC does not know there is a missile coming. The pilot does.
On the other hand, allowing the pilot that kind of freedom can and have been dangerous. If during straight and level flight, I kicked left rudder. Modern FBW jets practically removed pilot rudder inputs in maneuvers. The jet can perform coordinated turns better than any pilot can. So what need is there for me to kick left rudder in straight and level flight ? None. I have just departed from controlled flight.
Can I controlled flight straight into the ground ? Absolutely I can and sadly many pilots, in peace and in war, have. It is called CFIT.
Controlled flight into terrain - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
If I do not command pitch up when approaching a mountain top, I will perform a CFIT. Maybe it was dark. Maybe I am dazed from lack of blood because I was wounded in combat. The jet does not know there is an approaching mountain top. I do, or at least supposed to know.
Modern FBW-FLCS make aircrafts of any performance level safer to fly, which includes maneuvers, but the technology cannot prevent the pilot from taking the aircraft out of its specified safety zone, either intentionally or unintentionally.