Those things do tend to drop out of the sky, from time to time. Many times it boils back to poor maintenance practices. Sometimes it's a bad batch of parts.
I don't know anything about the F-16, but the avionics are usually made pretty idiot proof. "Operator error" in clear open sky is highly unlikely. And if the guy had caved in the landing gear, he'd still be on the runway. FOD (foreign object damage) down the engine compressor blades is possible, but I have seen a F-18 take a fuel cap down the right engine, and the god damn pilot didn't even know it until he'd arrived at his destination and the plane captain came out of the intakes completely discombobulated. Those engines are made to survive, single engine ground attack planes even moreso.
So, I'm inclined toward maintenance or part QA.
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