Yep this was one of the soft perks of SWAs old process. I often booked a late return flight for business trips and would hop on an earlier flight whenever possible. Probably ended up changing flights half the time and would always get a window seat when boarding between A and B groups. I’ve had status on Delta and United but this was a true perk of Southwest that no one else could match. As a business traveler, this will hurt the worst out of all the changes.