The current stage in the development of mathematical and software support for the processes of designing the development of hydrocarbon fields is characterized not only by the improvement of the means of geological and hydrodynamic modeling of reservoir fluid filtration but also by the use of algorithms for optimizing the development of gas deposits. The paper considers the problem of optimal control of the depletion of a gas reservoir with a low-permeability top. Using the so-called Myatiev-Girinsky hydraulic scheme, a two-dimensional equation describing the unsteady gas flow in a reservoir with a jumper is averaged over the capacity of the productive reservoir. This comes down to a one-dimensional equation with an additional term, taking into account gas-dynamic relationships between the reservoir and the jumper. For the numerical solution of process control problems, a formula for the gradient of the functional characterizing the reservoir depletion is found, and the method of successive approximations based on Pontryagin’s maximum principle is applied. In this case, the direct and conjugate boundary value problems are solved by the method of straight lines, and the required flow rate, without taking it beyond the maximum and minimum possible, is found by the gradient projection method with a special choice of step. A brief block diagram of the algorithm for solving the problem is shown; on its basis, a computer program was compiled. The results of calculations are presented to identify the influence of the values of the complex communication parameter not only on the state of the object but also on the operating mode of the well. The expediency of using the presented optimization tool is dictated by an increase in the share of deposits