Abstract: A surgical instrument for performing emergency tracheotomies comprises a rigid body having a circular cutter at one end used to make an incision in the front of the neck and in the trachea. The rigid body has a pair of fixed supports on opposite sides for supporting the fingers of the user, while a third movable support slides forward under thumb-pressure to move an actuating rod which, in turn, operates a gear mechanism for rotating the cutter blade during the incision. The rigid body can be held in one hand while the other hand is used to locate the area of the neck where the incision should be made. The undersurface of the rigid body is shaped as an elongated groove which conforms to the configuration of a trachea tube and provides a guide for inserting the trachea tube through the opening provided by the incision.