Rebel Turkish fighter jets were tracking President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's private plane when it suddenly "vanished" from radar, saving the president's life and allowing him to put down the coup.

President Erdogan was returning to Istanbul from a holiday near the coastal resort of Marmaris when a faction in the military launched the coup on Friday.

His Gulfstream IV jet was forced to circle in a holding pattern just south of Istanbul, unable to land because rebel forces had taken over the city's Ataturk airport.

As the plane circled, two rebel F-16s searched for the jet on their radars, finally picking it out among the commercial traffic and moving to intercept.

"At least two F-16s harassed Erdogan's plane while it was in the air and en route to Istanbul," a former military officer with knowledge of events told Reuters. "They locked their radars on his plane and on two other F-16s protecting him."

Another senior official said the presidential business jet had been "in trouble in the air" but gave no further details.

The president's Gulfstream IV was reportedly able to evade detection by changing its identity to match that of a civilian airliner, according to David Cenciotti, an Italian aviation expert blogging on The Aviationist.

In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Show all 17 1 /17 In pictures: Turkey coup attempt In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish President Erdogan attends the funeral service for victims of the thwarted coup in Istanbul at Fatih mosque on July 17, 2016 in Istanbul, Turkey Burak Kara/Getty Images In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Soldiers involved in the coup attempt surrender on Bosphorus bridge with their hands raised in Istanbul on 16 July, 2016 Gokhan Tan/Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt A civilian beats a soldier after troops involved in the coup surrendered on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey, 16 July, 2016 REUTERS/Murad Sezer In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Surrendered Turkish soldiers who were involved in the coup are beaten by a civilian Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Soliders involved in the coup attempt surrender on Bosphorus bridge Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan wave flags as they capture a Turkish Army vehicle Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt People pose near a tank after troops involved in the coup surrendered on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey, 16 July, 2016 Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish soldiers block Istanbul's Bosphorus Brigde Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt A Turkish military stands guard near the Taksim Square in Istanbul Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Pierre Crom/Twitter In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish soldiers secure the area as supporters of Recep Tayyip Erdogan protest in Istanbul's Taksim square AP In pictures: Turkey coup attempt People demonstrate in front of the Republic Monument at the Taksim Square in Istanbul Murad Sezer/Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish soldiers detain police officers during a security shutdown of the Bosphorus Bridge Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish Army armoured personnel carriers in the main streets of Istanbul Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Chaos reigned in Istanbul as tanks drove through the streets EPA/TOLGA BOZOGLU In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan speaks to media in the resort town of Marmaris Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Supporters of President Erdogan celebrate in Ankara following the suppression of the attempted coup Reuters

The president's pilots switched their radio transponder to that of a Turkish Airlines passenger jet, THY 8456, allowing the jet to blend in with civilian traffic.

The rebel fighters were unable to take the risk of accidentally shooting down a passenger jet full of tourists and later broke contact after being engaged by two loyalist F-16s and eventually broke contact, according to Mr Cenciotti.

Forces loyal to the president were able to reopen Ataturk airport, allowing him land safely and rally his supporters to defeat the coup.

Turkey criticized over post-coup backlash

The Turkish parliament is expected to approve the president's request for a three-month state of emergency following the failed coup.

In an address to the nation on Wednesday night, Mr Erdogan announced a cabinet decision to seek additional powers, saying the state of emergency would give the government the tools to rid the military of the "virus" of subversion.

The state of emergency will give the government sweeping powers to expand a crackdown that has already included mass arrests and the closure of hundreds of schools.

Turkish state media said a further 32 judges and two military officers had been detained by authorities during the crackdown since last week's coup, bringing the total number of people arrested up to 10,000. Nearly 60,000 civil service employees have been dismissed and hundreds of schools closed.

The targeting of education ties in with the president's belief his former ally and current nemesis Fetullah Gulen, who runs a network of schools worldwide, seeks to infiltrate the Turkish education system to bend the country to his will. Mr Gulen and his supporters have denied any involvement in the coup.

Mr Erdogan, who had been accused of autocratic conduct even before this week's tough crackdown, said the state of emergency would counter threats to Turkish democracy.

"This measure is in no way against democracy, the law and freedoms," he said after a meeting with cabinet ministers and security advisers on Wednesday night.

The president also suggested military purges would continue: "As the commander in chief, I will also attend to it so that all the viruses within the armed forces will be cleansed."