National Air Cargo negotiated a guilty plea and agreed to pay $28 million to settle charges of overbilling the federal government for logistics operations in Iraq.

Under terms of the agreement with prosecutors, none of the company's executives will serve prison time. Founder and company President Christopher J. Alf, avoided prosecution.

The firm pleaded guilty to a single felony count of making a false statement involving a shipment that cost the government $400 extra. Prosecutors had alleged that the company overbilled the federal government millions of dollars by falsely claiming that it delivered freight on time. It was also alleged that National sometimes used trucks when air delivery was required by a contract.

The Department of Defense is investigating whether National Air Cargo can continue shipping freight for the government in light of the guilty plea. The company currently handles 60 percent of the commercial cargo sent into war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Payments made on Wednesday included $4.4 million in restitution, $8.8 million in fines, $3.05 million that National Air Cargo forfeited to the government and $11.75 million in connection with a whistle-blower's lawsuit. The whistle-blower who brought the case to the government, Mark E. Oehm, 46, of Cheektowaga, will receive $3.3 million, the government said.