I was in Kona early last month and had an 8 am departure. There is a TSA precheck line at KOA and when I checked in that morning @6:30 there was a very short line. The regular line for TSA screening was quite long and once inside the airport, there were a lot of people waiting for their early morning flights. The line to the small snack shop/restaurant was especially long. I would follow the recommendation about dropping off people and luggage first. Usually flights departing/arriving in Kona are grouped together, so you can expect a crowd when you both arrive and depart.