The aim of optimal design is to find such parameters of a design that it best meets the requirements placed on it. An approach to solving problems of optimal design of multilayer structural elements with minimum mass from a finite set of materials is proposed. The approach is applied to the optimal design of multilayer glazing of vehicles under impulse loading. The glazing is considered as a multilayer open cylindrical shell with a complex plan shape. The stress-strain state is analyzed on the basis of the refined theory of multilayer shells and the immersion method. Since the optimization problem is multi-extremal one, a hybrid search method with adaptive search control is chosen for its solution. A model problem of minimizing the mass of three-layer glazing is considered, which demonstrated the features of the search for the optimal design based on the developed approach. Then the minimization of multilayer aircraft glazing under high-intensity pulse loading is solved. This kind of approach can be used to find the optimal structure in the design of composite structures.