Goals by Paolo Di Canio, Frederic Kanoute and Jermain Defoe enabled Glenn Roeder to celebrate his first away win since taking over in the Upton Park hotseat.
Following confidence-boosting back-to-back home triumphs over Southampton and Chelsea, the Hammers boss knew that he now needed set about arresting the awful away day form that had seen his side take just one point on their traumatic travels.
His plan was to structure a 3-5-2 formation that saw Sebastien Schemmel and Nigel Winterburn deployed as wing-backs, with Trevor Sinclair, Don Hutchison and Michael Carrick sitting in midfield behind Paolo Di Canio and Fredi Kanoute.
And with Czech lynch-pin Tomas Repka suspended, Hayden Foxe made his first start of the season while Roeder also seamlessly introduced Scott Minto into a three-man central rearguard at the expense of Laurent Courtois.
After drawing their last three games, Ipswich also made two changes, too, as debutant Dane - Thomas Gaardsoe - and Dutchman Martijn Reuser replaced John McGreal and Sixto Peralta.
In a tentative opening, neither side posed any real threat and, indeed, referee Steve Dunn was kept busiest booking Nigel Winterburn for failing to retreat the full ten yards before cautioning Gaardsoe for scything through the 37-year-old veteran.
But on 21 minutes Paolo Di Canio put a whole new complexion on the contest when he glided onto Don Hutchison's deceptive pass and calmly slotted an angled eight-yarder across the exposed Matteo Serini and into the far corner to put Hammers on their way to some precious away points.
The Ipswich response, however, was almost instant. For within seconds Reuser's curling 20-yard free-kick brought the best out of Shaka Hislop as he flew to his right to brilliantly palm the ball out from under the angle.
Then, as the half-hour mark approached, the Hammers 'keeper - no doubt conscious that David James was on the bench - somehow recovered from an ill-timed slip to paw out Chris Makin's awkward looping header off the line.
At the other end, West Ham still had no intention of resting on their laurels and with Hutchison and Michael Carrick forging an impressive midfield partnership, the Scottish international almost grabbed a second before the interval, but he unluckily nodded Sebastien Schemmel's deep centre back across the far post.
Town boss George Burley brought on Peralta for the start of the second half and the Argentinian's arrival was quickly followed by Pablo Counago as the Blues desperately tried to breach the East enders' hitherto dogged defence.
That double switch soon reaped dividends. For on the hour, the Tractor Boys ploughed out an equaliser with the type of calamitous goal that had all the typical hallmarks of the capitulations of recent weeks.
This time, when Venus floated over an inswinging free-kick, Hislop could only palm the ball onto Hermann Hreidarsson's instep and the Icelandic international gleefully restored parity at the far post.
Having seen so much hard work tossed away, Carrick was soon booked for tripping the escaping Peralta and seconds later more frustration followed for the 20-year-old midfielder as he rapped the angle with a scorching 25-yarder.
But just when it looked like Hammers were about to lose the initiative, the impressive Hutchison left a trail of defenders in his wake as his foraging 40-yard run took him deep into the heart of the Ipswich penalty area where he squared to the tireless Kanoute, who cleverly turned and drilled home his fifth goal of the season with the help of a deflection off his marker Hreidarsson.
Then, in the dying seconds, breaking substitute Jermain Defoe got the better of Gaardsoe as he raced onto the outstanding Carrick's throughball and coolly slipped a low 15-yarder to the right of the helpless Sereni.
And although former Upton Park youth prospect Matt Holland still found time to reply with the goal of the game, the Ipswich skipper's dipping 30-yarder came far too late to prevent the hardworking Hammers from chalking up their first away win for eight months with this impressive team performance.
whufc.com man of the match: Michael Carrick - Simply controlled the midfield with his superb range of passing and timing in the tackle. Unlucky not to claim a goal of the season contender with a rasping 25-yard shot and is rapidly developing into one of the most complete midfielders in the country.
Minute-by-minute:
3 - Reuser fires over the bar from the edge of the penalty area.
5 - Winterburn is injured in a clash with Venus and hobbles off, before thankfully returning to the action just a couple of minutes later.
12 - Winterburn booked for failing to retreat 10 yards at a free-kick.
18 - Stewart ghosts beyond Carrick to meet Makin's cross but fails to make proper contact with the ball just six yards out.
20 - Gaardsoe booked for foul on Winterburn. From the free-kick, Di Canio finds Sinclair who flicks on wide to Schemmel. The Frenchman's inviting cross is met by Kanoute, who heads over from the edge of the six-yard box.
22 - GOAL! A fantastic move involving some delightful one-touch football between Sinclair, Carrick and Kanoute ends with Hutchison threading a pass through to Di Canio, who takes his time before slotting cooly past Sereni. Ipswich Town 0 West Ham 1.
24 - Reuser's curling free-kick from just outside the penalty area is magnificently tipped over the bar by Hislop.
25 - Di Canio's corner is met by Dailly, whose header is blocked by the presence of Sereni and then cleared by a defender.
27 - A deep pass finds Makin at the far post, and the Ipswich defender climbs above Winterburn to tamely head the ball goalwards. Hislop appears to be in control but then slips and is forced to scramble across his line and palm the ball away.
31 - Another flowing move sees Di Canio hook the ball wide to Schemmel and then race into the box before missing the incoming cross by just inches. From the resulting corner, the ball finds it's way back out to Di Canio, whose deep cross is headed across the six yard box by Hutchison and out for a goal-kick despite the presence of Kanoute.
39 - Di Canio is once again at the centre of things as he skips past a challenge on the right and slips a pass through to Sinclair, whose low cross is cleared by a defender before Hutchison can pounce.
Added time: 2 minutes.
Half-time: Ipswich Town 0 West Ham United 1.
Second half:
46 - Substitution for Ipswich, Peralta replaces Clapham.
47 - Kanoute releases Sinclair down the right, but the midfielder's low cross is cleared for a corner.
49 - Schemmel finds Sinclair again, and this time his cross does reach the head of Kanoute, whose effort drops well wide of the post.
55 - Stewart booked for ungentlemanly conduct.
56 - Substitution for Ipswich Town, Counago replaces Armstrong.
63 - GOAL. Venus' free-kick is misjudged by Hislop, who palms the ball away, only to see it volleyed straight back past him by Hreidarsson. Ipswich Town 1 West Ham 1.
65 - Carrick collects a loose ball some 25 yards out and fires in a blistering shot on the half-volley that flies past the helpless Sereni but crashes against the bar and away to safety.
69 - Winterburn finds Kanoute on the left, but the Frenchman's left-foot shot is tipped round the post by Sereni.
71 - GOAL! Hutchison embarks on a powerful run through the centre of the field that sees him advance into the penalty area and skip past Gaardsoe before laying a square pass to Kanoute just 10 yards out. The Frenchman swivels and fires in a shot that deflects off Hreidarsson and loops over Sereni for Fredi's fourth goal in three games. Ipswich Town 1 West Ham United 2.
72 - As he did just moments after the Hammers' opener, Hislop pulls off a fine save from a Reuser free-kick on the edge of the area.
87 - Substitution for Ipswich, Magilton replaces Wright.
88 - Substitution for West Ham, Defoe replaces Di Canio.
Added time: 2 minutes.
90 - GOAL! Carrick's long clearance sails over the Ipswich defence and Defoe shrugs off Gaardsoe before sliding the ball past Sereni for his first ever Premiership goal. Ipswich Town 1 West Ham 3.
90 - GOAL. Holland picks up the ball in the Hammers' half and steps forward before firing a 25-yarder past Hislop. Ipswich Town 2 West Ham 3.
Full-time: Ipswich Town 2 West Ham United 3.